Body Mass Index (BMI)
Body Mass Index (BMI) is an indicator of a person's body mass (fatness), calculated using the person's height and weight. BMI does not exactly measure body fats but is an easy method used by most health practitioners to identify possible weight problems for adults.
Body Mass Index calculator Key in your height and your weight in the following calculator either in Imperial or Metric Systems. Then click outside the box and your Body Mass Index will appear at the bottom of the calculator. (Click on the "Refresh" icon on your Explorer if the BMI calculator doesn't show).
How to determine if you are really overweight A BMI reading of between
18.5 and 25 indicates your ideal weight. A BMI reading of between
15 and 18.5 suggests that you are underweight, and under 15 may indicate
an eating disorder. A BMI reading of between 25 and 30 suggests
overweight and above 30 is obese.
Recently, health authorities are recommending that BMI is used in addition to two other numbers to determine if a person really is overweight:
If your waist to hip (waist / hip) ratio is more than 1, (or in other words, your waistline is bigger than your hip measurement), then you are overweight.
Accuracy The BMI reading by itself is inaccurate to determine a person's ideal weight. Generally, developed muscles (as in athletes) are denser than body fats and the BMI does not take this into account, and would be deemed "overweight". On the other hand, children and the elderly may have differences in bone density, thus making them "underweight". To be sure, consider items 1, 2 and 3 above. If your statistics show that you are overweight in two or all three of the above categories, then you may need to begin a weight loss program.
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